mobile vehicle air conditioning servicing, diagnostics and repairs

Leak testing

 

If your vehicle is found to have a refrigerant leak, Vehicools can locate the leak and fix it using various testing methods and diagnostic tools.

 

If the leak is really bad, it is likely that no special tools or equipment will be needed, just my eyes and ears!. If however, the leak is slight, one or more of the following methods will need to be carried out.

 

The modern method for finding leaks is to fill the Air Conditioning system with oxygen free nitrogen (OFN) at a pressure of 8 Bar. The reason we use OFN for leak testing is because OFN is completely harmless to the environment if it leaks out. We then find the leak by using leak detection spray, which will bubble when the OFN leaks out.

 

We can also listen for leaks by using an ultrasonic listening probe. The probe will pick up on the high pitch noise of the OFN rushing out of the leak.

 

If the Air Conditioning system has ultraviolet dye already circulating in it, we can use an ultraviolet black-light lamp and special glasses to look for traces of the dye. Some vehicle manufacturers put ultraviolet dye in the system at the factory, for this exact reason. The system may already have ultraviolet dye in it if it has been leak checked before, or if it has had dye added at a previous service.

 

I can also use a combustable gas detection probe, to check for leaks on systems that are thought to be gas tight. This method is used to double check that a system is leak free after service or repairs.

 

Vehicools also stock 2 types of Air Conditioning system sealant. If the system has a very slight loss of refreigerant, that is undetectable using the methods above, it is likely that the system has a micro-leak. In this case I would recommend the most suitable treatment of the 2.

 

The sealant treatments are a last resort and are often recommended in an attempt to help the customer avoid costly evaporator or condenser replacements. Unfortunately, no form of system sealant is an ideal repair and as such do not carry any guarantee of success.